Happy Republic Day!

A chubby, naked, fair Krishna , holding a butter ball, covered in golden ornaments, Yashoda by his side, an indulgent smile on her face, even as her finger is raised in admonition. Rama and Sita seated on the throne, Lakshmana on one side, Bharata and Shatrughna on the other, surrounded by sages and kings; Rama a distinctive green in colour. These are both popular themes in Tanjore Art. I first saw both these in temples, the Navaneetha Krishna in many homes as well, if not original, at least a recent replica or just a copy. The Ramar Pattabhishekam I have better memories of, having seen it often at the Matunga Bhajan Samaj in Mumbai, as well as at my mother-in-law’s ancestral house in Thanjavur. The latter especially is close to our family’s heart, and it’s an exquisite piece of work, the expressions on Rama and Sita’s faces as intricately done as the gold work that surrounds them. Navaneetha Krishna Beautiful as they are , to me, they are associated with divinity more than just wor

Happy Republic Day!

Sitting in our room at Mashobra, every morning, around 10, we could hear the distant sounds of a band. The day we went on a trek, we learnt that the sound came from the Government school at Mashobra.

A couple of days later, I was sitting by the window, basking in the heat of the sun, watching the play of shadows on the mountains, when I glimpsed some activity below....

A group of girls were standing in rows, and soon, I realized what it was all about – they were practicing their march past!

As, over the next hour or so, I watched the children practice....

I was reminded of the time I was part of one of these groups... years back, in school.... Except, none of our teachers ever had a stick in their hand!

I just hope he did not use the stick for any punishment!

Last week, as I watched my son marching as part of their sports day events, I wondered about these kids... what were they practicing for? School in Shimla shuts down for the winter. They couldn’t possibly have any sports events in such weather... Maybe they were practicing for Republic Day? Wouldn’t they have their holidays though? Maybe the kids were called to school during the vacation for the Republic Day ceremony!!

That set me off on a whole new train of thought. Today, as we celebrate Republic Day, the day our constitution came into effect, most of us are at home, enjoying a holiday. There was a time when I used to wake up early and stay glued to the TV watching the Republic Day Parade, wishing I could be there, but today, I have a hard time even convincing Samhith to watch the parade. And it’s not just me. I can hardly see anyone else watching it either! Many of the kids I know would much rather stay home than go to school and hear a bunch of talks on freedom fighters they don’t even relate to. No matter how many stories they hear, how many books they read, their struggles don’t seem to inspire the admiration I felt at the same age. And it saddens me. I would so like Samhith to appreciate the fact that we owe our independence to so many freedom fighters, that our constitution is such a beautiful piece of work, giving us the right to live our life the way we want to, but above all, be able to march past, and proudly salute our National Flag, not as a chore, not as an event, but with pride in his country! Is it too much to wish for? What do you do to instill patriotism in your kids?

The Havelis of Bikaner - A Photo Post

The lanes are narrow , twisting and turning amidst buildings old and new. Crumbling old structures with intricate workmanship stand side by side with art deco buildings, and more modern constructions, which follow no particular style. Autos, bicycles, motorcycles and vans rush past, blowing their horns as loudly as possible, while cows saunter past peacefully, completely unaffected by the noise. In the midst of all this chaos, children play by the side, and women go about their chores, as we explore these by-lanes of Bikaner, and its beautiful Havelis. Facade of one of the Rampuria Havelis

Ladakh - Planning The Trip

Over 2000 Km by road, in around 10 days. Stunning landscapes, wonderful people. That sums up our Ladakh trip. But how did it actually work? How did we make it happen? Read on to find out! Leh, the capital of Ladakh , is accessible by air and road. Flying into Leh is the easiest, and time-saving option, while the road is the time consuming one, but with the added advantage of driving past some of the most beautiful landscapes in our country. Each option has much to recommend it, and we chose the road for just one reason – altitude sickness. Altitude sickness was one of my biggest concerns, since I suffer from motion-sickness. Yes, I do travel a lot, but that is despite my condition, and, over the years, have learnt how to handle it. I struggled with it when we visited Nathu-La in Sikkim, and wondered if I would be able to manage a week at the even higher altitudes that we would encounter in Ladakh. This was the reason we stuck to a basic plan, of only 9 days in Ladakh, though we

Bhedaghat - Home of the 81 Yoginis

The Narmada flows down the mountains , carving out a path for herself as she makes her way down to the plains of Central India. She cascades from the rocks, her fine spray making it appear as if billows of smoke (dhuan) arise from the flowing streams of water (dhaar), giving it the name Dhuandhar. Dhuandhar Falls The force of her flow creates a gorge , smoothening and carving out the rocks into fantastic shapes, the pure white of the rocks standing starkly against the shades of the water. It is a joy to cruise down the river in a boat, seeing the natural contours created by the river, now famous as the Marble Rocks. We are at Bhedaghat, located on the banks of the Narmada near Jabalpur, where thousands of visitors turn up to see these natural landscapes, creations of the sacred Narmada, and pay obeisance to her. However, to me, the most interesting thing about Bhedaghat, isn’t the falls or the rocks, or even the river. What makes Bhedaghat special is t

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Tanjore and Mysore Paintings at the CSMVS Mumbai